Dual Degree Alumna Promoting Health Equity in Boston

 Have you noticed a billboard in your neighborhood with your zip code on it?

 Billboards, MBTA ads, TV commercials and even an interactive website all ask Boston residents,  “Do you know your healthcode?” The public awareness campaign, run by Boston Public Health Commission’s Center for Health Equity and Social Justice, is designed to get people to think about how where they live can affect their health.

 “Different populations have different access to healthy foods, the best schools and different environmental exposures. We want to call that out,” said Rebekah Gowler (MSW ’08, MPH ’09) a policy analyst for the Center. “At a population level, where you live is a strong predictor for healthiness, disease rates, mortality and lifespan. We are trying to start a conversation and get people to think about how place matters.”

After graduating, Gowler sought a position that focused on macro social work in a public health setting. At the Center, Gowler combines social work’s community-based approach with a public health epidemiology.

The Center’s goal is to support the community through policy and systems change work.

“We are looking at how our policy and institutions, really macro level issues, have major impacts on populations,” she said. “We need to know why the world looks the way it does to have the tools and resources to fix it.”. Earlier attempts to reduce racial injustice have been unsuccessful. Current approaches have helped individuals, but failed to help populations on a macro level. The Center’s staff hopes to figure out how to eliminate inequity by looking at its root causes. This includes looking at social determinants and asking why resources look different for different populations.

“Our social systems are based on a racist paradigm,” said Gowler. “We are constantly asking ourselves, ’How can we integrate into our practice strategies that dismantle that racism?’”

In her role as policy analyst, Gowler promotes communication and understanding of health equity and social justice starting at an internal level. Her team is currently creating a professional development series for Boston Public Health Commission.

“We are trying to lead by example,” she said. “By creating policies within the organization, we hope to expand to the city level. Our priority is to eliminate inequities across the city.”

Gowler and her colleagues, including fellow alum Janine Anzalota, are developing a two-day core learning experience consisting of 10 skill-based workshops. Employees will choose to participate in a minimum of two workshops, with topics such as external policy advocacy and promoting equity within internal operations. After completing the training, employees will have ongoing access to one-on-one coaching and staff support.

Turning theory into practice, Gowler and her team hope to create a valuable and useful curriculum. While they are using some other programs as models, they believe as a public health department they are taking a new approach in both scope and scale.

“The data hasn’t changed, and the numbers haven’t changed,” she said. “White populations continue to do better than communities of color. Health equity has to be a priority. Promoting equity will improve health for everyone,” said Gowler.